How many people does it take to wash a carrot? Those who log on to Asda's new website will be able to see for themselves: Britain's second-biggest supermarket has installed a webcam in a processing plant so shoppers can see their Sunday veg rattling along a conveyor and into a sack.

The grocer has also trained a camera on the side of a milking machine in a dairy somewhere in Scotland. Shoppers might just catch a glimpse of a hoof poking out if they wait long enough. Or they could try relaxing in front of Escalatorcam – a camera focused on the foyer of Asda's Leeds HQ and a certain cure for insomnia.

This is what shoppers have been waiting for, or so reckons Andy Bond, chief executive of Asda, who was today outlining his new vision – "the dawn of a new age, where consumers dictate how we do business and the products we sell" – with a promise to lift the lid on the way Asda operates.

A team of bloggers has been recruited to tell shoppers about the business, rather than "a bunch of PR consultants", said Bond, even though he had the public relations industry's spinmeister-general, Matthew Freud, on hand to offer help during his speech.

He wants a "transparent" business; Asda would be run "by the consumer for the consumer", he declared, adding: "There is no 'behind the scenes'."

His new approach was supported by facts and figures produced by Tony Blair's favourite pollster, Philip Gould. Shoppers trust supermarkets more than teachers, said Gould, and 65% trust their local grocer more than any political party.

Carrotcam and Cowcam are just the start: "The ambition is to reach a point where customers can trace the journey of every Asda product: from farm to fork or warehouse to wardrobe," said Bond.

Bond has labelled his new way of doing business as "democratic consumerism" and compared it to President Obama's politics – "offering openness, transparency, collaboration and dialogue".

So if there is to be no "behind the scenes", might we soon be seeing inside battery chicken sheds or at board meetings – a cluckcam and fatcatcam?What about some live footage from an abattoir, a Bangladesh T-shirt factory or an angry price negotiation between an Asda buyer and a supplier? "If that is what customers want, we will really have to consider it seriously," he said, looking just a little concerned.

What about making his own salary or expenses transparent? "If a whole pile of requests come in to see my expenses, then bring it on", said the Asda man. But no, he wouldn't be baring all today.

He also unveiled plans for a "truly transparent" store, in South Wales "where glass walls will replace brick walls, giving a unique window into areas normally out of view". Like the staff canteen, presumably, maybe the cloakrooms.

He will also be offering cash incentives to shoppers who can come up with money-saving ideas for Asda – 5% of the saving. But only for the first year. Suggestions that cash could be saved by trimming Bond's rumoured £1m salary will not count.

The Asda boss outlined plans to consult thousands of shoppers, online and in person, for their views on new products before they go in the stores. They should have plenty of time for this – according to Gould, housewives spend 47% of their leisure time online.

The Asda man's big business plan attracted some withering assessments from rivals. Peter Marks, chief executive of the Co-op, said Asda appeared to be catching up at last: "It's good to see others adopting the kind of approach which has been the hallmark of Co-operation for many generations. Andy Bond and his team at Asda are welcome to come and see how it's done."

A senior executive at another rival said: "It's genius. Ask the customers what they think? I can't think why no one has ever thought of that before."